The Rowathon Day

The Flying Doctor Rowathon is an annual one day marathon row held at Wentworth, New South Wales and uses an "out & back"course of approximately 80 - 82Km. Still the longest one day fund raising row in Australia.

The 2017 marathon row will be held on the great outback Darling and Murray Rivers on Saturday, October 7th. Rowers can choose to complete the full distance, approx. 82Km or to row one or more of the four roughly equal stages.

The 2017 Rowathon Experience starts on Friday evening at Wentworth District Rowing Club (WDRC) with boat rigging and an informal BBQ from 6.30pm hosted by the WDRC. There will be ample parking by the river for trailers and boats and this is also the location for the pre regatta breakfast on Saturday morning.

Breakfast will be available at the river bank from about 6.30 am on Saturday morning with a briefing at approximately 6.45, following which crews will get ready for a great day's rowing. Check-in and starting will be from approximately 7.00 am. Crews will not be permitted to start before 7.00 or after 8am. Full crew instructions including maps of the course will be given out before the start.

Crews will start at WDRC and head down stream
then through the cutting to the Murray and row upstream on the Murray to the
Coomealla Golf Club where morning tea will be available. (see photos below of CGC river edge landing) The second leg is back
to WDRC where lunch will be available followed by the third leg up the Darling
River to a private property just beyond the 20Km marker (see photo below of landing) where afternoon tea
will be provided and the last leg is back to WDRC. The first two legs are approximately 22Km each and the third and fourth legs are approximately 19Km each.

A flat fee pays for breakfast, morning tea, lunch and afternoon tea. It is not necessary to take cutlery or crockery to the row, as everything is provided at the meal stops. Nor will you need to take any money, as you will have paid for your meals with your registration.

The day finishes with the Survivor's Roast in the WDRC boat shed where crews can compare great rowing feats, times and sore parts, always with a deal of satisfaction.

The dinner is paid with the entry form. During the evening we will auction a limited number of special items to raise funds for the RFDS.

We also expect to have a stall near the WDRC boat shed, at the end of the day, selling local produce and donated items, again to raise funds for the RFDS.

The Rowathon is not necessarily a race, but there are some serious records to be broken by those who enjoy a challenge. Crews are timed over the four legs of the course and the aggregates compared for awarding the trophies. If you and your crew want it to be less competitive, you can enjoy an extraordinary row at a more leisurely pace along the beauty and grandeur of one our nations great rivers.

Generally, crews have rest breaks on the water every 20 - 25 minutes, as well as taking three formal breaks on the riverbank with their Support Crews. Above and below the morning, lunch and afternoon stops there will be signs marking the points at which your boat will be timed in and out of each of these three formal breaks. Times do not significantly count for the Jack Joel Trophy but are of great interest to crews which,by rowing the full distance unchanged, vie for the Ian Law Trophy. We also have the Col Rogers Trophy for the "Fastest Boat" over the course with crew changes allowed and the Wentworth Perpetual Trophy for the fastest boat with no changes doing just the half marathon (first two legs). So "be in it to win it."